Overview
- A February 24 Variety/CNN town hall clip resurfaced this week showing Chalamet saying he doesn’t want to work in ballet or opera because “no one cares about this anymore,” a line he immediately joked could cost him “14 cents in viewership.”
- Opera singers Isabel Leonard and Deepa Johnny, New York City Ballet principal Megan Fairchild, and dancers including Victor Caixeta publicly criticized the comment, calling it narrow-minded and dismissive of rigorous art forms.
- Major companies responded on social media, with the Metropolitan Opera highlighting backstage craft, LA Opera noting its Akhnaten run is selling out, and the Royal Ballet and Opera stressing the disciplines’ enduring influence across culture.
- Further invitations and rebuttals came from Opéra national de Paris, the Vienna State Opera, and the English National Ballet, underscoring ongoing audience interest and current programming.
- No follow-up apology or clarification from Chalamet has been reported, as the reaction unfolds during his Oscars campaign for Marty Supreme and some online voices argue his point reflected a preference for wider-reaching media.